Conflict · Pearl Harbor heroNavy Weighs Stripping Doris Miller Name From Carrier for TrumpAired August 22, 2026 at 3:57 PM UTCWritten September 7, 2026 at 9:22 PM UTCRead the write-upThis storyTranscript · LOADING0:00A black Pearl Harbor hero could lose his0:02aircraft carrier. The hull is already0:04designated CVN 81. The future USS Doris0:07Miller, a historic first for a black0:09enlisted sailor.0:11The Navy is now weighing whether to0:12rename it for sitting President Donald0:14Trump while the ship is still years from0:16delivery. Will that historic name stay0:18on the fleet's next carrier or be0:20replaced before the ship ever sails? On0:22December 7th, 1941 aboard USS West0:25Virginia, Mess Attendant Third Class0:27Doris Miller, described as a black cook0:29and mess attendant, carried wounded0:31sailors to safety including his mortally0:33wounded Captain Mervyn Bennion, then0:35manned a .50 caliber anti-aircraft gun0:38without training and was credited with0:39downing [music] at least one enemy0:41aircraft. About 6 months later,0:43President Franklin D. Roosevelt0:45authorized the Navy Cross on May 11th,0:471942 [music]0:49and Admiral Chester W. Nimitz presented0:51it at Pearl Harbor on May 27th, 1942.0:54Initially unnamed in commendations,0:56Miller was identified after pressure0:57from the NAACP,0:59the Pittsburgh [music] Courier, and1:00members of Congress including Senator1:01James M. Mead and Representative John1:03Dingell after an original Medal of Honor1:05recommendation was denied by Secretary1:07of the Navy [music] Frank Knox. 643 men1:10died with Miller when the escort carrier1:12USS Liscome Bay was torpedoed on1:14December 7th, 1943.1:16The date was exactly 2 years after Pearl1:19Harbor. That loss is why veteran1:21advocates say stripping the carrier name1:22would erase more than one man's honor.1:24The ship at the center is CVN 81, a1:27Gerald R. Ford class carrier still under1:29construction and years from delivery,1:31>> [music]1:31>> scheduled for 2034. The Navy announced1:34the name at Joint Base Pearl1:35Harbor-Hickam in Hawaii with Acting1:37Secretary Thomas B. Modly saying it1:39would honor African Americans of the1:41greatest generation and [music] make1:42Miller the first black American and1:44first enlisted sailor with a carrier1:45namesake. An earlier frigate, USS1:48[music] Doris Miller FF 1091, already1:51carries his name. No US carrier has ever1:54been named for a sitting president.1:55Carriers have honored deceased1:57presidents, admirals, and distinguished1:59[music] service members. So, this change2:01would be a first. The deliberations2:03continued [music] through summer 20262:05with no decision made or announced and2:07no comment from the White House,2:08Pentagon, or Navy. White House documents2:11reviewed on Rebuilding the Navy and the2:13shipbuilding industrial base refer to2:14the ship only as CVN 812:16>> [music]2:17>> and no executive order directing a2:18rename to Trump was found. The Navy is2:20described as internally dropping the2:22name USS Doris [music] Miller and using2:24only the hull number while it weighs the2:26choice. Both accounts of the naming2:27agree on the historic intent even as2:29they differ by eight days. January 20th,2:32Martin Luther King Jr. Day during the2:33first Trump administration, which2:35matches Navy records from the ceremony2:36at Hickam, versus January 28th, cited in2:39a second report. The vessel is years2:41from delivery, leaving the historic2:43designation in limbo while deliberations2:45continue.2:52Thomas Bledsoe, Miller's great-nephew,2:54[music]2:54said the family was not notified by the2:56Navy and learned of the possible change2:58from news coverage, describing [music]2:59it as a shock that caused concern,3:01uncertainty, and disappointment. The3:03family continues a long campaign for a3:05Congressional Medal of Honor for Miller,3:07dating to the denied recommendation3:09under Secretary Frank Knox, [music] and3:11still championed with a Navy3:12recommendation that has not received3:13White House approval. Veteran reaction3:16framed it as [music] stripping honor3:17from enlisted sailors broadly.3:19Procedurally, nothing has changed on the3:20hull yet.3:21>> [music]3:21>> The question remains whether the3:23historic designation will stand, whether3:25Miller's name would be reassigned or3:26removed entirely, and whether the Medal3:28of Honor effort advances while the3:30namesake itself is under review. With no3:32timeline or formal consultation3:34announced and the family waiting for an3:36official position from the Navy, the3:37Defense Department, and the White House.3:40Like and follow for more stories that3:42matter.Explore with HeyDexThe shortThe short ↗